The present invention relates generally to a medication control and dispensing assembly and, in particular, to such an assembly including an improved combination of a container lid frame attachment and associated drug dispensing container.
In the medical dispensing field, a wide variety of approaches exist for assuring that the patient receives their medication from medication dispensing devices. One known dispensing system includes a medication containing and dispensing carton. Typically, these cardboard cartons are filled by a pharmacist with medicine arranged in doses. Thereafter, the cartons are sealed and labeled by the pharmacist for subsequent use. Generally, each carton is opened by a nurse or other person in charge of dispensing the medicine. In this regard, the carton is provided with a top or lid which when in the open condition defines a medication dispensing opening. Usually, the upper surface of the lid contains a label from the pharmacist so that the medication can be properly dispensed. During the dispensing of medication from these cartons, if the lids are not closed properly there is a chance of spilling or other inadvertent transfers of medication from one carton to adjacent cartons when such cartons are mounted in adjacent relationship. In addition, it is desirable to have the full dimensions of the dispensing opening available for dispensing of the contents so as to facilitate medicine dispensing. However, sometimes the carton lids can be bent or sometimes crushed, therefore inhibiting dispensing and otherwise minimizing the capacity of the dispensing system.
Another known approach for drug control and dispensing is described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,813,753. This approach relates to the use of a combination of a carton containing medicine and a releasably attachable tray lid attachable to the top flap of each carton. The lid is connectable to the top flap and includes a pair of hinge elements that are required for pivotal mounting on a tray for the device to operate as intended. In this regard, the tray is also formed with tray lid supporting structure for allowing the tray lid to pivot. Drawbacks associated with this approach are that it is rather cumbersome for the nurse to use. For instance, the nurse is continually involved with attaching and releasing the carton top to the tray lid during use of the carton. In this regard, the carton with a reorder label on it must first be attached to the tray lid and to do this the nurse must flex the box lid to attach the box lid to the tray lid. When it is time to reorder the drugs, the reorder label strip on the carton is used. However, to obtain this label, the nurse must release the carton lid from the tray lid, which covers and obscures the reorder label, and then remove the reorder label. Since the tray lid covers the reorder label, access to the label can only occur by releasing the box lid that is attached beneath the plastic tray lid. Thereafter, the nurse must reattach the carton lid to the tray lid in a manner as noted before.
Moreover, in any type of tray system if the tray is not entirely filled with its full capacity of cartons, the cartons may undesirably slide in the tray, particularly in a front-to-back direction. The cartons may by frictional force between the cartons be held in proper place when the tray is full, but if the tray is not full, there is front-to-back play which gets worse as the number of cartons inserted in the tray decreases. If only one or two cartons remain in the tray, they may even be loose enough to spill out if the tray is inclined during transport or storage.
Additionally, a basic tray approach like that described above is expensive to manufacture because of its several costly components, and the releasable attachment structure is not entirely reliable. Flexing of the sidewalls of the tray during normal handling can cause the plastic lid tabs to release from the tray. Plastic tabs on the lids also are subject to breakage during use which renders the system inoperable as it was designed.
Accordingly, there is a continuing desire to improve upon the drawbacks noted in the prior art by providing an improved medication control and dispensing package assembly.